Clover vs. Square

After a lot of research and consideration, I have put together some of the most important evaluation points according to many businesses owners across the United States. Two of the most popular point of sale systems on the market today are the Square register and the Clover Station Suite.

Overview

One of the most popular point of sale systems for small businesses here in the US is Square Register, the app based point of sale system. Square is mainly orientated toward new businesses who want to take advantage of new technology, but don't need extra capabilities offered by other point-of-sale systems.

Clover Suite, one of the most robust systems on the market, is geared toward small to medium size businesses looking for more in their Point-of-Sale system solution. This future ready system was originally designed with 4 concepts in mind: to be scale-able, simple to use, reliable, and elegant. The Clover App Market helps make this the most scale-able system in the world with its third-party applications. The system interface runs on Andriod OS so it provides customization and is simple to use. The stainless steel, Gorilla Glass top, sturdy hardware and extensive software giving Clover the ability to pre-authorize a transaction and take off-line payments with the highest levels of encryption, in addition to its free automatic updating makes the system dependable and reliable.

Price

Without consideration, everyone at first is drawn to Square's seemingly low price of $99. However, the whole Station set up (tablet with card swiper, cash drawer, and receipt printer) with Clover actually comes out to be a few dollars cheaper.

Square ($1,126-$1,326)
Stand ($99)
Cash Drawer ($229)
Receipt Printer ($299)
iPad ($499-$699)

Clover Station ($1299)
included in price: Tablet and Station , Receipt Printer, and Cash Drawer,

Both point-of-sale systems have accessories like bar code scanners, gift cards, cables, as well as additional units.

Payment Processing

Both the Clover Station and the Square Stand are payment solutions for businesses, but they differ in flexibility. With Square you’re going to process payments with Square, but with Clover you can process payments with a much wider variety of companies.

Square: with this POS you would process directly with Square Merchant Services, who charges 2.75% per swipe and 3.5% + $0.15 for keyed in transactions.
Clover: Clover is sold as a standalone POS system, which means it can be used with a large variety of First-Data affiliated merchant services companies. This is good for merchants because it gives them the ability to shop for the best credit card processing companies and get a lower processing rate (i.e. less than 2.75% or 3.5% per swipe, with CSBANK traditionally under 2.5%). Merchants need to be very thorough when shopping for processing so they make sure not to overpay, which unfortunately is very easy to do.

Mobility

One of the most advertised features of both of these systems is the ability to accept transactions virtually anywhere.

Square Inc. known for their mobile credit card swiper, which plugs in to the headphone jack of a smartphone, is a simple solution for businesses that need mobility in where they can accept credit card payments. The card swiper can also be used in conjunction with the iPad stand. The Square reader is a very simple device, so it does not offer features outside of accepting swiped cards. To accept EMV or contact-less transactions a separate device is offered for purchase by Square.

Clover, on the other hand, in addition to the Clover Station also offers the Clover Mobile, Clover Mini, and Clover Go. The Clover Mobile, a full POS solution in itself equipped with a bar-code scanner, can work in tandem with the Station( in other words, they cant talk to each other via wireless connection) or can be used as a stand alone system. The Mobile is a great option for businesses on the go, Restaurant EMV solution (pay at the table, taking orders and sending orders to the kitchen/bar), Retail Management (adding new inventory and bar-codes to POS )and other mobile businesses.

Managing Your Business

While both systems offer the ability to accept transactions and reporting tools, each go about it in a completely different way. One system is contained within a single application, the other works more like an operating system. This is where you really see some key differences in the systems and functionality.

With Square, merchants download the register app, the all-in-app based POS. Merchants use it for payments, reporting, etc. The biggest downfall is users are limited to features and programs built within the Square register app. If square does not offer it, the feature cannot be added to your Point of Sale. For example, the email addresses collected at check-out does not integrate with email marketing campaigns and inventory is not updated from processed invoices and sales.

Clover offers merchants the system flexibility and customization similar to that of an Android smart phone. The Clover App Market includes third-party applications designed for specific business needs. Software developers can install applications to the Clover App Market, thus increasing the scale-ability of the system. In simpler terms, companies can develop their own app to be added as an integration to your Clover System. To further detail the customization for specific needs, the app market includes applications for scheduling, digital gift certificates, invoicing, social media management, website store integration, invoicing, and many more. Just like the app market on a smart phone, there are free and paid applications to choose from.

Customer Support

Merchants using Square have to deal directly with Square for customer support. I am not a representative of Square so I cannot speak on the specifics of their support, however in my experience speaking with small business owners, I have heard mixed reviews on their support not in their favor. Unfortunately, Square has developed a bad reputation for a lack of availability and support.

On the same note, because so many processors are affiliated with First Data most all bad experiences with Clover are directly due to the support they received from their Merchant Services company. First Data is the largest credit card processing platform in the world, with that said, there are many companies willing to sell you a Clover Station. Another reason evaluating your merchant services choices is extremely important, a Clover system cannot be reprogrammed to another processor once installed, further emphasizing how large a factor support should be when evaluating a merchant service provider for a Clover system.

With any point-of-sale system, at some point, you will run into issues, have questions, and need someone to guide you through it. Irrelevant of what company you pick for this, their track-record of support should be taken into consideration prior to getting set-up.

A Clover Suite system purchased or financed with CSBANK gives you 4 tiers of support; an individual CSBANK account manager, Direct Connect 9-5 (EST) Merchant Support, and 24/7 Clover POS Support and First Data Tech Support.

Hardware Design / Aesthetics

Both systems are visually elegant with aesthetic design in mind. Square, is an iPad solution with a card swiper stand, while Clover is a point-of-sale device. With its' tough and reliable design, in my opinion, Clover is the better business hardware bundle. Its stainless steel finish, Gorilla Glass screens, and durable design was made specifically to facilitate the needs of a growing business.

Closing Thoughts

Both systems can be used to effectively manage a business, depending on the business. If you are a merchant who processes less than $10,000-15,000 each month and have an average ticket less than $10, Square is most likely the better fit solution for you. Merchants that have a larger average ticket and processing volume around $15,000 or more each month should strongly consider Clover. The savings you will have from a lower processing rate than Square's 2.75%/3.5% is typically significant enough to outweigh the cost of the system all together. Clover's third-party app market, is the biggest difference between the two systems. The Clover App Market makes Clover the most versatile and scale-able system in the world. So versatile that it can even integrate into other POS systems like Aloha, Dinerware, and others in specific integrations. Apps made for employee management, payroll, scheduling, and industry specific apps make the complications of running a business easier to predict, calculate, forecast. Clover's integrated customer marketing, e-commerce website store, and multi-location features makes it easier for business owners to manage several locations, employees, and inventory all in one simple dashboard.

Clover was specifically made to power a business where as an iPad was not made to manage a business from, it was made as a personal use tablet. Common issues with iPad based point-of-sale applications is the updates with IOS effecting the app, causing the app to unexpectedly malfunction and lose its wireless connection to add-on peripherals. This is an easy fix with a quick refresh of settings but having to constantly refresh the connections prior to each sale, in some cases, causes much frustration with the inconvenience. These issues relate back to its original functional purpose. Users experience these issues, as noted above, because an iPad was not made to hold long term wireless connections in a demanding business application environment.

If you are looking for a full business management point-of-sale solution, you will have to invest in your business. Meaning, the phrase old as time, you will get what you pay for. If you are looking for a simple system with basic point-of-sale features to accept payments, Square may be right for you. But understand, Square is not a full management solution point-of-sale. I save businesses owners money on a daily-basis so I understand cutting costs where ever possible is important. However, the mistake many small business owners make when comparing Clover to Square is sacrificing the long term solution for a cheap fix in a $100 iPad stand and free app. If you are currently comparing the two I would urge you to answer the following questions:

Do I want to know where my customers live to better plan marketing efforts?
Is having the ability to reach out to my customers after they leave my location important?
Do I want my point of sale inventory to integrate with my online website store?
Is having a system that is scale-able with integrations like Quickbooks and other programs important?
Do I want the ability to manage employees and payroll easily and conveniently?
Do I need a system to manage inventory with restock alerts?

If you answered yes to any of these questions Clover is likely the better option for your needs. I hope this has helped in your process of selecting a point-of-sale system that best fits your business.